Turning Points
by DYlogger
Summary: Robin is fired, Artemis is confused in justifying her choices, Aqualad is having dreams about an alternate Young Justice, Superboy is pissed, Red Arrow is stubborn, Wally's mentor dies, and M'gann can't do anything but watch her team fall apart. Gen.


**Turning Points  
>By: DYlogger<strong>

_**Disclaimer: To use or to not use, there is. To own, there is not. In any case, I don't own Young Justice.**_

**A/N: So I've been dead. Did you miss me? No? Didn't think so. But that's okay, because I come bearing fic! This is told in ten parts, the first seven detailing the changes in the characters' lives, and the last three detailing what they do about these changes. It also includes some comics!YJ elements and was written before season two came out (before we're introduced to Zatanna, actually), so there may be some things that seem odd.**

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><p><em>So we make our stand and pray<br>On this declaration day;  
>For independence I will fight,<br>With liberty I will defy!_

_So we make our stand and pray  
>On this declaration day<em>_;  
>Give me liberty or give me death;<br>I'll fight 'till my last breath!_

_-"Declaration Day", Iced Earth_

**I. Robin**

"You're fired."

Robin's jaw dropped, his eyes widened, and he reeled back from the harshly spoken words. He tried to make his vocal chords work, but all he managed was a meek sound that slightly resembled "What?"

"I said, 'you're fired'. You were hurt and I can't risk you getting in the way again," repeated Batman, gritting his teeth. Robin knew from years of experience that the Batman didn't like repetition. This time, though, he couldn't help the shock that came along with the surprise.

Dick's eyes narrowed and he stiffly walked toward the Batcave elevator. "You have no right," hissed Dick, "Robin is _mine."_

"As long as you live in this house, you will," ground out Batman. "Go up to the manor. Leave the suit."

"Fine! I just won't be _yours _anymore if you're going to do this."

Dick knew he needed Robin. He couldn't just up and stop. He used to need to show Batman that he was worth it; he used to need to prove himself. That was no the case anymore. Now, he just needed to fly, and while he was at it, do some good for the world.

He couldn't fly under Batman's wing anymore. He couldn't live with this. He should have gone with Roy when he left and became Red Arrow. He knew he had to leave Gotham, but he had nowhere to go. Roy would consider him a traitor, Young Justice would consider him a quitter (and Batman could find him there), and he didn't feel ready to go solo. (Of course, Batman could find him anywhere, but he would have jurisdiction over Robin in Young Justice.) He wasn't independent like Roy was, and that was why he didn't leave when his best friend did. But like Roy, he did need to work on his own terms. He needed to leave the Manor, even though he didn't know where he was going to go. At this point, he didn't really care, as long as he ended up somewhere.

Dick changed into civvies, and stuck his suit, his wallet, and a change of clothes in his backpack. On his way out of the Manor, he grabbed some provisions for the day and headed from the outskirts of Gotham to somewhere else.

**II. Artemis**

"Hi. Are you Artemis Crock?"

"That's me."

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Barbara Gordon, and the Headmistress has assigned me to be your guide until you settle in here. By the way, I've been meaning to ask you this since I started looking for you, what did you do to deserve a guide?"

"Got a personal recommendation from Bruce Wayne, I guess. But I really don't know how. My grades weren't phenomenal before, and I didn't think I'd fit in with a bunch of snobby rich kids who got here on their parents' salaries."

"Well, you're in luck. I am neither rich or snobby. Then again, my only friends here consist of an overly independent outcast chick who wants to differentiate herself from her restaurant owner father and a fourteen-year-old prodigy from the circus. But hey, at least we're both trying."

"I'm not sure if I should tell you this, but I'm just here for my mother. She never got opportunities like this when she was younger, and she pretty much guilt-tripped me into this."

"She told you how crappy her life was and made you feel bad about not wanting to taking advantage of this chance, so you did?"

"You're intuitive."

"Why, thank you. And with that intuition, I know that you don't want to be here, not really. You're doing it for your mother's sake, because she wants you to. And that means you're living her dream life and not the one you really want."

"No offense, Barbara, but I don't think you know what I really want."

"Probably not, but because you're not here for you, what you want isn't to be here. You could possibly be happy here, but you'd probably be happier at your old school."

"There are an infinite possibilities."

"But this is more probable."

"I want to make my mother happy."

"And there you go. You know that kid prodigy I mentioned? He doesn't want to be here either. His parents are dead and he was taken in by this guy that he pretty much owes his life to. If he hadn't been taken in, he'd still be in Juvenile Detention because, well, have you _seen_ Gotham's orphanages? They're packed to the brim.

"Anyway, he wants to make his adopted dad happy, so he's here. He's not doing this for himself; he's not afraid of being turned on the streets and he knows it won't happen unless he runs away. He _could_ go to a public school with other kids his age, and he'd love to, but that means doing what he wants and not what he thinks his adopted father wants for him."

"So you're saying that he has a martyr complex and feels personally guilty for what he thinks is other people's happiness."

"Yep. And you do too."

"Wha- I do not!"

"Yes, you do. School should be about what's best for _you_, including your own wants, not for your mother, and you're not accomplishing that."

"Whatever, Barbara, but I don't need you to psychoanalyze my life."

"Right. I've got class, and so do you. What do you have?"

"Math."

"I've got English. Math is down the hall, make a left, and it'll be the second door you pass."

"Thanks. I guess I'll be seeing you around?"

"Yeah. But just… think about what I said. We can drop the topic later if you want, but at least think on it, okay?"

"…Alright. Sure. Yeah."

**III. Aqualad**

_Superboy laughed with along with his two best friends, Robin and Kid Flash. Superboy and Kid Flash were in civilian clothes, and Robin was in his uniform, as was the routine when Robin wasn__'t in civvies at the cave. Yet Robin wasn't really Robin; he was… someone else. He couldn't place what was different, other than the costume, but Kaldur knew it wasn't really Robin. Kid Flash seemed easily distracted, something that didn't happen often, and for some reason, Robin and Superboy didn't call him Kid Flash, but Impulse. He and M'gann didn't appear to exist at all, and Artemis had made an appearance earlier dressed in red and with the name 'Cissie'. But that couldn't be, could it?_

_Young Justice seemed to be a lot more carefree, than he knew. They didn't have a raison d'être, they were just… there, being best friends, and saving the world while they were at it. They seemed just the opposite of what he knew and how he perceived everything. The people he was watching didn't feel the need to prove themselves to their mentors because they weren't held back._

Aqualad woke up, and realized that he had dreamed about another version of Young Justice… of what Young Justice could be. For the third night in a week.

He wasn't sure whether to be jealous or disapproving of that world. He _liked_ having a purpose, but he wasn't sure how he felt about putting the team above the friendship. He enjoyed the team and he supported their cause, but he wondered if they could ever be like the other world; putting family before villains.

Aqualad didn't want _his_ Superboy to be childish and girl-crazy like the other Superboy, or _his_ Kid Flash to be as innocent as Impulse, or for Miss Martian and himself to not exist. The other world did show him something, though; he wasn't entirely happy with how his world's Young Justice was run.

**IV. Superboy**

"_You're_ telling me _now_ that Luthor is my other father?"

Superboy should have known that Superman didn't call him for father-clone bonding time. Ever since he had been released from his tube, he had wanted to spend time with his would-be father figure. That was, before he found what a horrible mentor, not to mention father, he was.

"Conner, don't-"

"Don't _what?_ Freak out? I have every right to freak out when my father who hasn't been much of a father to me decides to suddenly care!"

Superman winced, "I'm sorry you feel like I haven't been much of a father-"

"Damn right, Superman! We don't have enough of a relationship for me to call you even _mentor_, let alone father. I know I'm a clone, I just got over that you ignore me because I'm a clone designed to kill you all, and you come along telling me that Luthor is my other… gene donor?" Superboy managed to spit out the words, causing Superman to flinch back. "Of all days, why did you pick _today_ to tell me? And how dare you use the ruse of 'father-clone bonding time'?"

"Those were your words, not mine," was all Superman could say. He didn't deny any of Superboy's accusations. "And I wish you would call me Clark."

Superboy glared. "I'll call you Clark when you call me Superboy instead of Conner."

"What if we settle on _Kon-El_?"

"Who named me Kon-El?"

Confused, Superman replied, "I did."

"Who named me Conner?"

"Dinah did."

"Exactly- wait, really? Dinah?"

"Well, she gave me input…"

Superboy crossed his arms. His angry demeanor held just a hint of smugness. "So _you_ named me Kon-El and Conner Kent. Well, guess what? You don't consider yourself my parent, so you had no right to give me a name. You had the chance, and you blew it."

"But _Cadmus_ named you Superboy. When Luthor paid for you to be made."

"And Luthor paid for Cadmus to raise me. They taught me about the world, and later I made my choice to leave and rebel against them. I'm not saying that they have the right, but you certainly have no say."

Superman put his hand on his Superboy's shoulder, who shrugged it off. "Conner, it's just a name."

Superboy went back from slightly angry to completely outraged again. "A rose by any other name is just as sweet? I'm not a fucking rose! And my name is Superboy. Not Conner Kent. Not Kon-El. Those are _aliases_. My name is Superboy whether you like it or not and whether you choose to call me by it or not. Superman is an alias and a title for you, Superboy is a _name_ for me."

"But Superboy isn't generally an Earth name, Conner. If you want to live a normal life, you'll need a normal name."

"Do you not hear me? I don't _want_ a normal life!" Conner shouted. "I've never lived a normal life. I grew up in a test tube!"

"A test tube controlled by genomes that twisted your inhibitions."

If Superman's previous comments had not set off the clone, this one certainly did. Superboy flew into a rage, growling and running toward his would-be mentor. He had only enough control at the moment to restrain himself from physically assaulting Superman, but he didn't stop himself from letting the words run out of his mouth with enough venom to cause his first gene donor to flinch back.

"Those inhibitions were my _own_, and you know that. The genomes told me things, persuaded me, but they did not control me. The most they ever did was control my nerve impulses so my body would do what they wanted it to, but even through that, I was still sentinent. It was only when I realized that there was more to the story that I changed my mind. _I changed my mind_, Superman. There's no such thing as mind control, only suggestion. They didn't take over my body; they only told me what they wanted me to believe and it was all I knew until I was freed.

"Superboy is the name I was given, and it's my name. Kon-El and Conner Kent are nothing but _aliases_. And if you don't get that, fine. You can have the damn insignia of the damn House of El back. But like it or not, Superboy is what you'll have to call me."

Superboy leapt off the roof of the Cave and stormed into his room. It wasn't until ten minutes later when he realized that Superman didn't know that Superboy was already aware of his heritage.

**V. Red Arrow**

"What the hell are you doing here, Robin?"

A shrug. "Realized you were right. Ran away from Gotham. Know a place I could stay? I only have so much money on my fake name."

A stare. "Barbara called this morning. Said you were missing."

A raised eyebrow. "Did she?"

A slow nod. "Apparently, she made a new friend. Her name is Artemis."

A smirk. "Really."

A sigh. "Go home, Dick. Or go somewhere else and find your own light."

An eye roll. "Haha, Roy. Funny. I've got nowhere to go, and I can't go back to Gotham. Maybe I need a new name."

A grin. "Nope. Gotta be sixteen to graduate sidekick school and get a new name."

A halfhearted glare. "Hey, my fake identity is sixteen years old."

A crossing of the arms. "Now why would you age yourself up by two years?"

A tilt of the head. "It's the legal age in Gotham. Here, too. And Central."

A knowing nod. "Go to Central, then. God knows Wally will need the support. The Flash just died."

A look of surprise, then horror. "Shit."

A humourless laugh. "There we go. I coaxed some emotion out of the emo kid."

A real glare. "Not emo. The opposite of Batman, really. Hey, come with me?"

A wistful stare into space. "Can't. Got my own city."

A groan. "Figures. Well, I can probably handle this once I stop being what you call emo."

A hand held out. "Well, maybe I should stop being so stubborn. Contact me, 'kay?"

The hand ignored, a hug given instead. "'Course. You're on the Young Justice personal ally contact list."

A chuckle. "There's the Robin I know and am occassionally pissed at."

A genuine smile, and a flickering of the shadows. "Of course. Now I've got a Kid Flash to cheer up."

Then the boy known as Robin was gone.

**VI. Kid Flash**

Barry Allen's funeral was two days ago, and Wally West had not attended. He had been _busy_ taking care of the former Flash's beloved city. Who knew that a usually tame city could break out so badly when its protector was gone, leaving only his protégé?

Wally knew the importance of keeping appearances up now that Barry was gone, now, and he couldn't ditch class to go fight Captain Cold anymore. It would be too much of a coincidence if Barry Allen died and the Flash disappeared at the same time, coupled with Kid Flash appearing every time Wally West disappeared. It certainly would help if Wally took up his uncle's mantle and legacy, but he couldn't do that. He just couldn't become the Flash, no matter what the Justice League thought of him.

Before, he and his uncle were their own system that relied on each other for support. Now, Wally was alone. Wally didn't have any friends his age outside of Young Justice and his parents and sister weren't much help. Now would be a good time to find a support system, but _he didn't have the time_.

Wally was gazing out of his school's hallway window helplessly when someone tapped his shoulder. He turned around to see a kid with relatively long blond hair and blue eyes.

"John Wayne," said the kid, "I'm new to the city. I was hoping to make some friends here."

"Wally West," smiled Wally. "Welcome to Central."

Maybe this 'civilian friends' thing wouldn't be so hard.

**VII. Miss Martian**

Her team was falling apart.

Yes, M'gann did promise not to go inside their heads anymore. But she didn't need telepathy to know that her teammates were changing, and that this was tearing the team apart.

The same team that took her in when her Uncle J'onn couldn't because he didn't have a home. The same team that taught her about life and traditions in this planet. The same team that she trained with, did homework with, made cookies for, and laughed with. The same team that she fought alongside. These were her friends and she would give up her life for them.

To see them being broken apart internally without conflict tore _her_ apart.

No, they weren't arguing or anything. Not even close. They just… strayed away from each other. Their friendship bond was still there; she could sense it was still strong. They were just having conflicts with their own lives, and it seemed as if they were _outgrowing_ the team.

She never thought the day would come. She certainly never thought she would be the one who had to call a team meeting about this.

But the day did come, and she did call the meeting.

She dreaded what the results would be.

**VIII. Declaration Day**

"So what's up, M'gann? You're not usually one to call team meetings," noted Kid Flash.

"Well," began the Martian nervously, "I noticed that things have changed around here. You guys are acting… different, and it's changing how we're acting around each other."

"What do you mean?" frowned Wally.

"I'm not sure how to describe it, but you all seem more distant from us. Is there something up?"

"The Flash is dead and I've been busy burying my feelings in taking care of the city," answered Wally stonily.

"Superman's a dick!" blurted Superboy. "He keeps calling me Conner and he expects me to be perfect when I don't even know what perfect is!"

Artemis thought for a moment, then spoke tentatively. "I recently met someone at my new school. We talked and I thought about things and I've come to the realization that I've only been going to Gotham Heights to, well, live the life my mother wanted to live. I'm just having a dilemma about what to do, that's all." She paused, and then added, "Oh, and I'm not really Green Arrow's niece. Or his partner, since I operate in Gotham when I'm not with you guys."

"Wait, you're not working with a big-time Leaguer and you joined a team who want to prove themselves to their big-time Leaguer partners?" frowned Wally.

"Shut up, West," muttered Artemis. _I'm here to prove to myself that I can be a good person with my shady background, and I got a little too caught up in it_.

"Really? I think you're selfish en-"

Wally was effectively silenced by a glare from Artemis, who then wondered if she just said what she thought aloud.

"Yes you did," replied M'gann. She blushed. "Sorry. You were projecting."

"I have been contemplating our personal goals for Young Justice," said Aqualad slowly. "We banded together as a team to prove that we can take on the real world without easily breaking to our mentors, correct? And we became friends as an effect of fighting together as a team."

Everyone nodded.

"I've been having recurring dreams," he continued in a faster pace than that of before. "They were of an alternate Young Justice, where friendship and personal relations came first, and saving the world was just a bonus. They formed a team out of friendship and not of a common goal. What their mentors thought didn't matter, because they knew that they did matter. They didn't hesitate to think of themselves as sidekicks because the term doesn't mean anything negative to them."

"That's great and all," said Wally, "but what does that have to do with us? You don't want us to put crime fighting aside for heart to heart talks, do you?"

Aqualad smiled. "Of course not. But what threw me about those dreams was that I wasn't in them. That made me realize that I've never put my own world ahead of the rest of the world. And theoretically, the larger world should be more important than my personal world, but my personal world is more important to me.

"I can't think like Batman, putting everyone ahead of myself, but I've been acting like him. I should be able to act more selfishly. I think the dreams came two months ago, when Tula married Garth, and my epiphany came a few days ago. I do not know what to do with this realization, but it has thrown me off track."

M'gann blinked once, then laughed. "Hello, Megan! I know what we need! A break from Young Justice! Wally's mentor is dead, Superboy's annoyed at Superman, Artemis doesn't know how her life is running, and Kaldur feels self-depraved. With a break, Wally can make sure Central City stays in control, Superboy can talk things out with Superman, Artemis can figure things out at school, and Aqualad can take some time off for himself!"

"Wait," said Artemis slowly, "can we disband instead? Batman won't accept that we'll be away, because we're still on his team, and therefore his terms, by being on leave. If we're not a team, we're not under his jurisdiction and he can't call on us for an 'emergency mission'."

"But I don't want to break up the team!" protested M'gann. "What about after our issues are solved?"

"This isn't about the future," growled Superboy. "It's about _now_, and we'll deal with what happens later when it happens."

M'gann thought about it and smiled in acknowledgement. "Alright. We can't save the world if we can't save ourselves, can we?"

"So we've agreed," said Aqualad. "Young Justice will disband on the terms of personal confict."

Everyone nodded.

"Hey," said Wally, "has anyone seen Robin?"

**IX. Interlude**

Batman didn't know where he was. Batman _wouldn't_ know where he was until he reappeared as Robin, and he didn't have the resources for a new identity, not that he wanted one. He and Batgirl had created their own network unknown to Batman when they met each other alone, and had created alternate identities in case of an emergency. Batgirl still didn't know who he really was, though he would probably have to tell her when she found out that Dick Grayson was studying abroad the same time Robin moved to Central City and his emergency identity appeared there. At this point, though, he didn't particularily care because he could no longer be caged by his mentor, despite having to live in a furnished warehouse that was supposedly abandoned. All he had left to do was tell Young Justice his whereabouts.

At night, Artemis would run with Batgirl, who she discovered wasn't actually under Batman's wing. She learned to live with Gotham Heights, and planned to stay there until she graduated. It was only two years, and it would make her mother happy, and she liked to see her mother happy no matter what Barbara Gordon said. Sometimes, she would continue to train with Black Canary and Green Arrow, who she stayed on friendly terms with. She figured her own day life could wait a few years; she already had her nights all to herself.

Superboy was homeless. He refused to go back to Smallville, and he refused to become Conner Kent again. He was currently moving from city to city, looking for a home. He would occasionally wonder how long it would take him to return to Superman, but then he would remember the way he was treated and straighten his resolve.

Aquaman had closed off Atlantis to Aqualad, and even in exile, Kaldur'ahm would obey his king's orders. Somehow, Aqualad found himself in the pier of Gotham City, conversing with fish. Apparently, he couldn't allow himself to be selfish, as he was too accustomed to serving faithfully.

M'gann was living with her uncle J'onn under the name of Megan Morse, and quite frankly, she was bored. Her uncle actually lived in League headquarters and M'gann usually found herself alone in John Jones' apartment in Keystone City when he wasn't visiting, which was quite often. She wanted to go to school, but she had no pre-secondary education to back her up in high school. Her civilian identity was seventeen years old, so she couldn't attempt to fit in at elementary school. At night, she would fly around the city and occasionally stop a robbery or two, but Keystone was generally a tame city. She kept herself going knowing that her friends were happy sorting out their lives.

Wally couldn't take it anymore. He didn't have time to do the charity work Barry was always doing. Not without support from friends and partners. He found that he couldn't tell his new civilian friend anything. He needed Young Justice back, and even though he knew he shouldn't be intruding in on their lives, he had to at least try. What were Artemis and Aqualad talking about eariler? Oh, yeah. _Selfishness_. For the good of mankind, of course.

Wally made up his mind and pulled out his comm, hoping the others had kept theirs.

**X. Liberation Day**

"_Hey, guys. I know we just disbanded, and I don't know if you guys'll even get this message… well, I can hope, right? Central City has gone bonkers with the Flash gone, and I need help. Actually, I'd be able to deal with things better even with just support… Please, guys, I need some friends I can rely on, and I know you guys have crap to deal with too but that doesn't mean we have to cut off contact from each other, right? Can you come to these coordinates? Perferably in civvies, since a tree house isn't exactly discreet. Please?"_

Six minutes and fourteen seconds after that message got out, Superboy and M'gann arrived in , quickly followed by Aqualad. They sat waiting for Artemis and Robin, wondering if either of them managed to escape Gotham, when a blond-haired boy burst into the tiny box that the four were in.

"John!" said Wally in surprise, not having thought about the possibility of being walked in on.

The boy grimanced and pulled at his scalp, pulling off a wig and revealing black hair. "Sorry," winced Robin, "I forgot to take that off."

"Robin!" laughed Wally, tackling the Boy Wonder in a hug. "Where have you been?"

"Long story short-" he managed to gasp through the hug, "Got fired-" an intake of breath, "-ran away. Couldn't make last meeting-" another sharp intake as Wally lost his footing, "-but I watched the video footage." Robin was released and he continued hurriedly, "Oh, and Artemis called; she said that she's stuck in Gotham. She can still join in the meeting though. Red Arrow's also on the line."

"_Batgirl's right beside me, and her hearing's impeccable even when she's not on the line_," said Artemis.

Simotaneous greetings came from all three sides of the comm.

"I have an idea," continued Robin. "From Aqualad's dreams. Why don't we reband, but as a team with a different goal than before? Roy could join us this time too, since we're not working for the League anymore. We could take care of Central City; Wally's clearly been running himself ragged."

"No thanks to you, _John_," glared the speedster while Artemis groaned at the pun.

"Actually, it's Dick," grinned Robin, "Grayson," he added as an afterthought. "Although John Wayne is my alias, since Dick Grayson is studying abroad."

"_So you're the circus kid Barbara keeps talking about. She's pissed that you didn't tell her you were leaving, you know_," noted Artemis from the comm.

"Well, now you can tell her why."

"_Wait, doesn't she- Oh, she's- Shit. That means Bruce Wayne is- Shit! I got my scholarship because of that, didn't I?_"

"I didn't say that," smirked Dick.

"_She says hi, by the way, and I don't know bat-code, so you'll have to decipher things for yourself._"

"_Or maybe she just wants to say hi_," said Roy dryly. "_Your plan, Dick?_"

"Right," nodded Dick. "We can't go back to trying to make the League see that we can actually _do_ semi-important stuff independently while working under them. But judging from Wally's appearance, we all _need_ each other for support because life is crappy, so we can't stay disbanded.

"_So what do you suggest?_" asked Roy.

"We can stay together here, in Central City! I get that the commute from Star City and Gotham is about an hour, but Wally and I live here now and Superboy, Kaldur, and Megan could easily move here since they have nowhere better to go."

"That is correct," agreed Aqualad while Superboy grunted his agreement.

"I've never had anything to prove to my uncle. He'll approve, and if he doesn't and goes to the League, they can't do anything short of incarcerating us, which they won't do because we haven't done anything wrong," said M'gann, nodding enthusiastically.

"Aqualad, you said your dream consisted of versions of us who were best friends and saved the world while we were at it, right?"

"Yes," said Aqualad.

"Well," said Dick eagerly, "I was thinking we could be that team. We don't need to prove to the League that we can do anything because we already know we can, and we're going to do it. Central City is a tame city that's gotten wild with the Flash gone; once we calm the bad guys down we could do charity work.

"I like the idea of charity work," mused M'gann. "Saving the world is about more than fighting crime, and the Flash was always a figure who found time for his citizens. We could carry on his legacy."

"Exactly! And when there _is_ trouble, we could use the system that we- Batgirl and I- created to tap into the police line and alert us. Once we get get access to it on our headquarters' computer, of course. The League doesn't know about it and it's been there for years."

"What about headquarters?" asked Superboy.

"I live in a furnished warehouse that looks abandoned on the outside. I'm surprised that nobody knows about it, but I'm not complaining. You could easily join me in living there and we could turn part of it into headquarters. We'd have to move stuff and build a computer, I guess."

Aqualad nodded slowly. "I like it." He turned to Dick. "Perhaps this time, Robin, you could take over as leader. I believe you are ready enough."

Dick shook his head and laughed. "Who needs a leader? If there's conflict, the people involved vote, and if it's a tie, we split into two groups to accomplish what we want. Didn't we spend the last year proving that we're strong? That means we can settle whatever argument that comes between us, because we've already made it this far."

"You're right," said Wally suddenly. "We could really pull this off. Superboy and Kaldur need secret identities and we have a shitload of stuff to work out and get done, but I think we could make this work." He stopped, thinking. "We'd need a new name, though. Young Justice is associated with the League, and we're not. But we can come up with something later."

Dick looked around him. "So what do you say?"

There was a moment of silence before Superboy spoke up. "Let's do it," he said. Then, after a pause, "Do I get to choose my civilian name this time?"

Everyone laughed, before agreeing. Dick's comm, though, was a little silent.

"Well? Are you two in?" demanded Wally.

"_If Dick, despite being the prodigy that he is, managed to juggle making his dad happy in prep school while fighting crime I can probably do the same._"

"So-" Wally started to clarify.

"_That's a yes, dunderhead,_" groaned Artemis.

"Cool," grinned Dick. "What about you, Roy?"

"_Put me on reserve. The rest of you don't have your own city to take care of, with Green Arrow being a shit mentor and abandoning Star City every time he's called away_."

"What?" exclaimed Wally in indignance, "You can't-" he started to continue, but was interrupted by Aqualad.

"We understand, Roy. It's alright."

"_Good luck. You know you can still call on me if you really need my help, though, right?_"

"Of course," replied Aqualad, and there was a click as Roy's comm turned off.

"_Batgirl wants to be on reserve too_," said Artemis.

"As long as she doesn't hand us over to Batman…" teased Robin, and everyone else laughed.

There was a screeching sound from the comm as Batgirl tore the device from Artemis. "_You know I don't work for him,_" growled Batgirl.

The four members looked amongst themselves, silently agreeing. "Alright," said Superboy. "Artemis?"

"_I'm okay with it. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a paper on vigilante ethics to complete._" Artemis' comm clicked off as well.

"Do you guys want to drop by the warehouse?" asked Robin. Not waiting for an answer, he jumped out of the tree house, beckoning his teammates to follow.

* * *

><p><strong>AN (2): Well, there you have it. Hey, they had to grow up sometime, right? As always, drop me a review and tell me what you think.**


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